Francisco Rodriguez trade to Brewers not a sign Mets are giving up on season insists Sandy Alderson

Mets GM Sandy Alderson says the team is still looking to win this season. (Howard Simmons/News)

The dumping of Francisco Rodriguez's albatross contract was "an independent transaction" - and not an indication that the Mets are raising any white flags on their season - Sandy Alderson insisted Wednesday.

Alderson found a taker for K-Rod and his payroll-strangling $17.5 million vesting games-finished option for 2012 when the first-year Met GM dealt the firecracker closer and about $5 million to Milwaukee for two players to be named in a deal announced just after Tuesday night's All-Star Game in Phoenix.

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Clearing Rodriguez's contract off the books clearly can't hurt the Mets' ability to re-sign shortstop Jose Reyes - and Alderson said the trade also shouldn't necessarily be construed as a signal that another pending free agent, All-Star outfielder Carlos Beltran, will follow Rodriguez out the door before the July 31 non-waivers trading deadline.

"From my standpoint this certainly does not signify a change in direction from our continuing attempt to win games this season," Alderson said on a conference call. "But I do want to make it clear, that the Rodriguez trade should not signal anything to anyone about Beltran.

"I think far more important in that situation will be realistically how we play over the next week, two weeks, three weeks and how the season develops."

The Mets surprisingly reached the All-Star break a game over .500 (46-45) under first-year manager Terry Collins - despite the lengthy injury absences of stars Johan Santana, David Wright and Ike Davis, and a more recent DL stint for Reyes, the NL's first-half leader in batting average and several other categories en route to a huge free-agent payday.

"Would you say that?" Alderson replied with a laugh when asked if he believed this deal enhances the Mets' chances to re-sign Reyes. "Everyone seems to have their own opinion about that question, so we'll leave it there."

The Mets will open the second half Friday night at home against Philadelphia; they are 11 games behind the Phillies in the NL East and 7-1/2 games back of Atlanta for the wild card. And Beltran's immediate fate appears tied to improving those numbers.

"Carlos' situation is well-known to all teams, and not surprisingly, given his situation and his performance this year, there's been a lot of interest expressed. We have not pursued that interest to any great length to this point; rather we have been focused on our play on the field," Alderson said. "At some point, I'm sure the interest already expressed by those clubs will be reaffirmed and we'll have some conversations. But as I've said on occasion, I'd love to see Carlos with us as we continue this run."

It will not continue with Rodriguez, whose tumultuous three-year tenure in Flushing included 83 saves, but also an arrest and thumb injury stemming from an altercation with his then-girlfriend's father last August.

After undergoing anger-management classes, Rodriguez was a model citizen this year on and off the field, including a 2-2record, a 3.16 ERA and 23 saves in 26chances, while recording 34 of the 55games finished needed for his whopping contract option to kick in for next season.

"There's been widespread speculation perhaps as early as spring training that this kind of trade might occur.... I think it was widely anticipated even among some of the players," Alderson said. "So one could view this as a slight impediment, but it really should not signify any significant change in direction."

Alderson said the deal with Milwaukee was finalized "in the ninth inning" of Tuesday's All-Star Game, and that he signed off on it nearly three weeks before the deadline because the market could be flooded with several relievers by the end of the month. He also stressed that Rodriguez's recent switch in agents from Paul Kinzer to Scott Boras "didn't have much of an impact." The Mets will receive two prospects from a submitted list by the Brewers, and will scout those players more intensely over the coming weeks.